The Cleveland Rowing Foundation (CRF), formed in 1989 to promote the health, educational and social benefits of rowing, needed to find a permanent headquarters on the Cuyahoga River for its 800 members and the urban schoolchildren it mentored. A vacant commercial site with 1,100 feet of riverfront and two buildings seemed ideal, but the $3.5 million price tag for the seven-acre property was daunting. CRF sought assistance from the Cleveland Foundation, which recognized the challenge as an opportunity to expand public access to the Cuyahoga River.

The foundation connected CRF with the Trust for Public Land (TPL), a conservancy organization. With the support of a $250,000 foundation grant awarded in 2010 on the condition the monies be applied toward the creation of a public green space, CRF and TPL were able to raise the funds needed to purchase the concrete-covered property. Three acres were converted into Rivergate Park, which opened in May 2011 as a recreational resource for kayakers, canoers and rowers. The park also gave CRF room to expand its skills-building program for urban youth.